Ghost From Her Past
by ilovetvalot
Summary: Fifth prompt in the TV Challenge - Will and Grace - "Hey-La! Hey-La! My Ex-Boyfriend's Back!" Will returns...will he complicate matters? This follows the story "A Cacophony of Change".


Ghost from the Past

Prompt: Will and Grace - "Hey-La, Hey-La…My Ex-boyfriend's Back"

"He's here," JJ said flatly, cuddling the baby to her breast in the hospital bed.

"Who's here?" Dave asked, confused, standing in the doorway to the pale pink hospital room.

"Will…he just called," JJ bit out, nodding at the phone. "He said he'd be over in a little while. Are you sure this is a good idea, Dave? What if he changes his mind? What if he decides that he wants her?" JJ asked quietly, voice laden with unspoken worries.

"I'm not going to give him that opportunity. As far as I'm concerned, he was a sperm donor. But, we need those documents signed before I can formally adopt Sarah, JJ. You know that."

Shaking her head, JJ whispered, "I still don't understand why we can't just put your name on the birth certificate."

"Because he knows, JJ," Dave replied in a resolute tone.

"He's known for months and not raised a finger to find out anything about her," JJ growled.

"That doesn't mean that somewhere down the line he might not decide that he wants to be a part of her life. By signing those papers," Rossi explained, nodding at the documents on the bedside table, "I can eliminate that possibility. Those forms say that he doesn't get a say in anything…ever. They protect us and they protect the baby, honey."

Shaking her head, fury sparking in her eyes, JJ bit out, "He wanted her dead before she was even born! I can't believe we have to ask someone like that to give her up."

"It's just a formality, Jen. He'll sign the papers and be out of our lives…for good."

Smoothing the blond curls back from the sleeping baby's head, JJ nodded, her engagement ring sparkling in the light. "Not soon enough," she whispered as a soft knock sounded against the wooden door.

Meeting her eyes, Rossi asked steadily, "That's him. You ready?"

Biting her lip, JJ nodded again as David rose to open the door.

Stepping inside the bright room, Will nodded at David. "Rossi."

"William," Dave replied evenly.

Stepping further inside, Will stared across the room to where JJ sat on the bed, cuddling an infant to her chest protectively. "So you had it," Will said flatly.

Narrowing her eyes at him, JJ ground out, "Sorry to disappoint you, Will, but, yeah, I had HER."

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded."

"Yes," Dave said coldly, "You did. But, we're going to make things easy for you, Will," Rossi said in a no-nonsense tone, grabbing the papers from the table beside JJ. Passing them to Will, he ordered, "Sign them."

Glancing down at the documents he held, Will asked, "What are these? I'm warning you, JJ, if it's money you want…"

Cutting him off, Dave shook his head. "Neither of them want a damn thing from you other than your signature on those papers. It's a waiver to paternity, Will. It basically says you aren't obligated to this child in any shape, form or fashion. Ever. Exactly what you've wanted all along. In return, you stay as far as humanly possible from both of them. I'd say it's an even trade."

Looking at JJ, Will asked, "You want this?"

Glaring coldly at him, JJ replied, "Yes, Will. I want this. My daughter deserves a father that'll love her unconditionally. You're not it."

Nodding, Will hastily scrawled his signature across the papers before handing them back to Dave with a shaking hand. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry I couldn't be what she needed," he said, nodding at the sleeping child.

"I'm not," JJ said through clenched teeth. "Get out."

Raising his eyes to meet the older man's across the bed, Will said quietly in a voice tinged with sadness, "Take care of them."

Walking across the room to open the door, Dave nodded. "Don't worry. I will."

And that fast, it was over. Will LaMontagne had walked away from an innocent child and David Rossi had gained a family.

Turning to face the only woman on earth that he could honestly say he'd ever loved, he whispered, "Now, she's really mine."


End file.
